Incomplete
by thelightningstrike
Summary: Old. James/Lily realise they're exactly what each other is looking for. Don't read!


The first time he saw her there he was practising Quidditch, for his upcoming match against Hufflepuff. He wasn't really trying, seeing her there had set his mind in motion, wondering, again, whether now she would consent…

He should approach her, but found he couldn't. He knew he hated her, and he didn't want to be reminded of it once more. He wanted to leave her, sitting under the tree by the lake, in peace.

She hadn't intentionally planned to sit under this tree, beside this part of the lake, this close to the Quidditch pitch, where she could hear their triumphant yells of a good practice.

She just wanted to sit, and this place, she supposed, was her preference. It was perfect for quiet thinking, and she had a lot of that to do. She was confused about her emotions, she had a few friends, but none of them provided the things she needed. She had good grades, but this made her feel emptier still. There was nothing she needed to achieve, her OWL results had come back, a row of O's and only two E's; she didn't even have her studies to occupy her.

She didn't know what she needed, which made it harder to find. Realising this, a solitary tear rolled down her cheek. She hated feeling so alone, so empty.

Every time he practised Quidditch, he saw her there. He saw her sometimes when he wasn't playing Quidditch too, when he was with his friends, or just looking out of a window.

And he wondered… she was never accompanied by anyone, was she upset? Did she need help, a friendly face to guide her? But then again, he wasn't a friendly face. He was probably the person she would least like to see, and this kept him watching from a distance.

She wished she had someone, someone to take away this pain. She saw people, surrounded by their friends, laughing, and was jealous. She had friends, but they preferred each others company, she was sure of it. She'd had him, up until he called her that term, that word that she hated. That he'd promised didn't mean anything to him.

But she had no one, and so she continued to sit, to watch the world go by.

His friends had started to notice, he was sure of it. Their jokes no longer made him laugh- he no longer sought their company. He wanted to be alone, to see only her, by the lake. They left him to it, knowing he'd come round eventually, and he was thankful for that.

In lessons he noticed she was still attentive to the work, but no longer raised her hand. To everyone else she became a background image, to him she came into sharper focus than anyone.

He so badly wanted to reach out, to wipe the pain from her eyes.

She wanted to break free of this emptiness that was dragging her down, ruining her life, but she was in too deep. She needed someone else to step in. Anyone else- to make her life worthwhile again.

He watched her everywhere he went now, and was saddened by her sadness. He so badly wanted to talk to her, but still hadn't worked up the courage. He wanted to make her laugh, but found his jokes had run dry.

She had never been in love, and wondered if this deprivation had made her like this. She sought out male faces in the crowd, but no one seemed on her level, no one, it seemed, would understand.

She was sat under the tree again, and normally he hadn't come so close. He was only several feet away, still watching, still wondering. He wanted so badly to talk to her. He took another step forward.

She shivered and noticed the darkening sky. She wondered if she should go back to the castle, but decided against it. If night fell, there would be less chance she would be seen, less chance someone would wonder why she was out here.

He noticed her shiver and look up to the sky. He was surprised she had not gone back to the castle before now, and was relieved that she had not. He had never been so close to her without her knowing before, ten feet away she sat, unbeknown to his presence. He enjoyed the fact she could not see him, but was saddened that she did not know he cared.

The first raindrop that fell hit her on the forehead. She touched it wonderingly, enjoying the cool relief. For the first time in days, she felt like smiling, a little. She did not permit the smile to break forth, however, because she knew a little rain was nothing to be happy about.

It was raining now, but he didn't care. He stepped closer, only 8 feet away now, letting the rain spatter his skin. The desire to talk to her had never been so strong. He took another step forward.

She took her wand out and lit it, casting a light over the dark lake, so that she could see the rain splash on its surface. She loved the look and sound of rain on water, and the scent of rain on grass. She breathed in, and the scent surrounded her. She permitted herself a small smile, before a tear slid down her cheek, mingling with the rain.

He wanted to tell her how he felt. He wanted to tell her that he wasn't as arrogant as she thought him, that he didn't just want her as a trophy prize. He wanted to tell her how his feelings had changed towards her in the past few days. He knew now how it felt to be in love, because his heart was actually trying to burst from his chest at the very sight of her. He moved closer still.

She unlit her wand and laid it aside, and leaned back, into the tree, her eyes closed. She hoped that her sadness was finally coming to a close, that she was finally getting over herself. She hoped that her friends would let her back into their circle; she wanted to be herself again.

He didn't feel himself around her, he knew that for certain. It was like a part of him was missing, and only she could fill it. Knowing this, and knowing that he needed her, knowing that he did not care if what he was about to do failed, that he would find another way, he closed the distance to the tree.

She didn't notice him approach at first, but when she did, she was alarmed. She couldn't even speak, but when he sat down next to her, she found her voice.

"What are you doing here?"

He looked into her eyes, and shrugged. "I thought you might need some company."

She bit back a retort worthy of their former arguments, and said "Why?"

"I've, I've been watching you, these past few days."

He'd been watching her? What- what did he mean by that?

"What do you mean?"

"I saw you sat here when I was playing Quidditch, and I've been watching you ever since."

She looked away. "Why did you come here?"

The sincerity in her voice made him answer her truthfully. "I've realised something, recently."

She didn't say anything, but continued to look away.

"I've realised that you don't hold for me the attraction that other girls hold- it's something, something more."

He studied her face, which remained blank.

"I understand, I really do."

"How can you?" she asked, still looking away.

"You feel incomplete, empty."

She looked back at him. "How did you know?" she whispered.

"I feel the same way," he said simply, and leaned into the close the distance between there faces.

Their lips met, and suddenly, suddenly, she felt complete. She couldn't pull away, because she didn't want the emptiness to come back.

He pulled away. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't…"

"No, you should," she whispered, and kissed him again.

They stayed out in the rain for a long time, and walked back to the castle holding hands. Their hands seemed to fit together, and each felt complete.

_Okay, so I just wanted to do a James and Lily one-shot. This is not how I believe they got together or anything, it's just a new take on it. I'm thinking of doing a few more one-shots like this, so please review and tell me if you like it! Thanks, Molly x  
P.S Thank you so much for the constuctive criticism hpobsessedrissa, it really helped, and so I changed my ending; thank you. _


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